Kindergarten and first grade students  complete a Halloween project with volunteer librarian Susan Curtiss.

Father Maes blesses the school following opening day Mass.

These students were the top sellers of raffle tickets for the school's main fund raiser, The German Buffet.

After making pilgrim and Indian costumes, the Kindergarten and 1st grade students enjoyed a Thanksgiving feast of vegetable soup, pumpkin pudding, cornbread, cranberries, and apple juice.

Catholic schools:

helping to overcome obstacles in life

Some people choose to be firefighters, policemen, mailmen, or even professional sports players. Most of these people grew up living normal lives, eating healthy, and receiving an excellent education. But there are those special ones. You may not be able to tell through their physical appearance. But if you pay close attention, you can always tell who these special children of God are because of their Catholic education.

Catholic education has helped many in their past, present, and future. It has helped me overcome many obstacles in my life. From saying no to drugs and crime, to just being nice and treating others with respect.

As I went through my years at St. Joseph, I never really realized how lucky I was to be getting a Catholic education and being in a school where you can learn about God, talk about God and go to Mass every other day.

I have had friends at the public school for many years now and they treat me no different. I know that I am specially picked by God to study and learn more about his life on Earth and in Heaven.

By the teachers of

The question has been posed, "Why Teach in a Catholic School?" For the teachers of St. Joseph School in Ellinwood the reasons are varied, with some being personal while others are practical. Even though we have many reasons for wanting to teach at a Catholic school, when it comes right down to it our major motivation for teaching at a Catholic school is the fact that we get to spread the Good News of God.

To recount the practical reasons cited for teaching at a Catholic school, our first point is the small student -teacher ratio. Specifically, at St. Joseph School we average one teacher to every 10 students. On occasion, depending upon the grade level and subject being taught, that ratio can drop to as low as one teacher to two students. This low student -teacher ratio is nearly unheard of at public school facilities.

Another reason of practicality is the fact that we have the ability to be more flexible when dealing with rules and regulations. Because a public school must follow state rules and guidelines, they have very little leeway when it comes to enforcing regulations. However, a Catholic school is a private organization and although we do follow many of the state rules and regulations, often times they simply do not apply to the Catholic school setting. One example is all the talk of banishing the Pledge of Allegiance from public schools because of the term "under God." Because we are a private, Catholic school this simply will not apply to us, therefore, we are under no threat of losing this privilege.

The personal reasons stated for wanting to teach at a Catholic school begin with a teacher who first taught in the public school system. Upon retiring from his career as a public school teacher, he pursued a position here at St. Joseph School because he wanted to finish his teaching career in the same school where his Catholic education began. Through his position at St. Joseph School, he is able to give something back to the school that gave him his start in his academic and religious life.

Also stated as a personal reason is the parent support we receive. Typically, parents who send their children to a Catholic school are very interested in their child’s moral well-being, as well as their academic success. Therefore, whenever there is a problem with a child the parent is always willing to assist in any way possible to help rectify the situation. In addition, because many of our parents attended St. Joseph School as students themselves, they have a vested interest in the continued success of our school. Our parents always make themselves available to assist any way they can to make our school as great as it can be for the community.